SwpatnlEn

In the Netherlands, both the Parliament and the scientists who studied the software patents question at the order of the government since 2000 have been clearly opposed to software patentability. However the Ministry in charge has continuously ignored these studies, misinformed the Parliament and acted contrary to its instructions on this dossier. Even cross-party motions involving the governing parties did not help against the combined power of the "Royal" company Philips and the ministerial patent bureaucracy.

2001-03-14 Parliamentary Committee instructs Ministry to exclude software patents by an approach similar to that later adopted by the European Parliament. The responsible "patent expert" at the Ministery of Economics immediately sneered at this proposal, didn't to understand it and pointed out that it deviated from the EPO doctrines and was therefore unacceptable.

2001-12 Economische en juridische aspecten van het software-octrooi -- expert opinion commissioned by ministry of ecnomics at request of state secretary Ybema to answer inquiry of parliamentarians Hindriks and Udo. Says that software patents are harmful to the economy, remarks and that some of their disadvantages exist also in other fields of patenting.